Archive for January, 2010

As much as we are enlightened by the years of training we have done as therapists, there are still hidden beliefs and fears that pop up when we are called to step out of our comfort zone and move into something bigger.

It shows up in so many ways, from passing up on an opportuntiy that someone presents, making excuses, and down playing your abilities (among other things). At the core are many beliefs that keep you from moving forward. This is true for you, because if you did not have these beliefs you would have exactly what it is you desire in your life and in your business. There are so many resources out there that you could read, learn, and access on the internet, and even if you didn’t know exactly what to do first in you business, you could get that inforamtion and implement it and that would be it. You would have the number of clients you desire, you’d have the money you desire, and you’d have the ease you desire.

Instead your beliefs have dominated your decisions. You do not effortlessly say yes to what is presented and create what you desire. Fear keeps you in a holding patterning and your beliefs pop up to affirm why you can’t do those things you are so longing for.

What can you do?

First off become aware of your beliefs. What is it that you believe in that keeps you stuck? Read below to see which ones resonate with you (without judgement):

I don’t have what it takes

I don’t know enough

Who am I

I’m not an expert

It will be too much work

No one will pay

I’m not enough

I don’t really need to help more people

I’ ll get overwhelmed

I’m not a good speaker

I’m too disorganized and unfocused

I should change for this

I’m not good enough

Others will be upset

I’ll have to discount

Who am I to do this

I wont be able to do it

People don’t want what I provide

The economy is bad

I’m not as good as they are

This will not work for my business

I don’t have time

I don’t have money

I don’t have support

I don’t like to sell

I’ll be embarrassed

I’ll be vulnerable

They’ll see I’m a fake

They’ll laugh

I’ll have to work to hard

Others will get upset

I don’t want others to uncomfortable

My partner/spouse may leave

Others may reject me

Awareness if the first step. Releasing these beliefs is the next step. There are many ways to heal and let go of old beliefs. I’ll be offering very specific tools and strategies in the upcoming tele-class How to Change What You Are Worth, and Get It!

We will peel back the layers of false beliefs around money-because how you do anything, is how you do everything. We’ll explore how you mirror your beliefs by the way you relate to money. You’ll have money breakthroughs so you finally charge, and make, what you desire! Click here to say yes to money breakthroughs! http://businesssuccessfortherapists.com/4-week-class

Amazing opportunities are unfolding in our lives right now and all of us who are healers and helpers are being called forward into helping more people. If you are reading this newsletter then you are being called, because you would not have this yearning for something more if you are not meant to be stepping forward into the bigger version of your self.

But this is not about you. It’s not about you achieving a certain amount of prestige or money in your business; it’s more than you. It’s about stepping out into what you are called to do with your life and not hiding out in some office or agency, playing small because you are fearful. Yes, you can be of great service to your clients in these settings and I’m sure you offer those you work with your unique gifts; however, in your heart you know you are called to step into something bigger.

So the fear kicks in when you are in a place of moving from your comfort zone. The fear shows up as limiting thoughts, not knowing the “how”, making excuses of not having the time or the money. We all know that feeling of longing, which is your intuition guiding you in the direction of you soul’s purpose. It’s signaling to you what to do next and asking you to follow your heart’s path.

However, most people get stuck in the longing. They allow the fears to keep them from moving forward and when we don’t move forward the longing and the discontent become stronger. What happens in this place of longing is that you stifle your gifts and become stuck. You are holding back the reigns on your life and in your work because of fear and you become stalled in anxiety, control, worry, and other repetitive patterns keeping you in place.

What happens is that eventually we have breakdowns. Work enviornments become so toxic we are force to change, you get laid off, programs change and you find you cannot tolerate it anymore, or your bank account is empty and no clients are coming. Then you are forced to look at what you’ve been holding back and ignoring. As they say, “the breakdown before the breakthrough”.

I know this cycle all too well, and I’ve seen in myself, with friends, family, clients, and therapist colleagues. What I am learning through this process is to become more connected to my intuition to help guide me. For it is in the resistance of the next step, and growth forward (because of fear) that we stay stuck. When you surrender to the fear, trust your intuition, and follow your heart’s path, that is when the opportunities arise.

So listen to your heart. Truly it knows what is the right next step for you. Then the energy is not mis-spent on staying stuck, but is invested on moving forward. This is a gift, and again it’s not just for you. When you move forward through fear you share your journey with others and inspire them on their path. Every step outside of your comfort zone and aligned with your heart allows you to ignite the spark for others. This is why we are here; this is our life’s purpose. Not to hide and dim your brilliant light, but to shine it brightly so others can boldly say yes to their own divine spark!

If you are longing to make the big changes in your life, helping others, and in your business then I invite you to be a part of the Professional Creative Solutions Certification Program. This program teaches you creative solution methods to use in your own life to make powerful transformations, and will give you tools to deepen the work with your clients, and how to structure these methods to enhance your business (or create one if you don’t have one). Join out program before MIDNIGHT Thursday 1/21/10 to save over $400.00.

Did you know that your therapy business, and any anything else that you may be doing, is a reflection of your inner beliefs? We all have the stories we carry, and the big plots in our lives that we replay again and again. It’s the awareness and our conscious choice that will help us more from these stuck repetitive patterns into a new behaviors and consequently a new business paradigm.

Many therapists have stuck beliefs around money and helping others, and there is a feeling of being incongruent when you’re talk about helping others and being paid well for your services. So letting go of these inner beliefs that have kept you playing small, will in turn allow you the opportunity to step forward and help many more people.

Here’s a simple exercise, yet quite powerful. Write down all the beliefs you have around making money and helping others. What do you discover about yourself in the process?

I know so many people are in a state of change now, in their lives and in their work. There is a shift of exposing areas of your life you may have tried to keep hidden, those areas that are hurt, vulnerable, and fear filled. You are being called to move gently through this process and to play so much bigger in your life. Whatever fear that has kept you from taking a step into the possibilities of your future, whatever doubts, and worries that have kept you playing small and kept you from helping many more people, whatever theses feelings and beliefs are- it’s time to let go.

I recored this call with the intention you would receive a gift by listening to it, and you would discover the truth for you. If you are feeling called to transform your life and business from a place of connecting with spirit, then I invite you to listen to this heartfelt call.

As I move my business from the safety and comfort of my therapy office to a more visible business I have discovered some really remarkable things about myself. I’ve found my story keeps popping up- the belief system that keeps me playing small out of fear that I’m not adequate, that I don’t know enough.

It’s remarkable that stories we’ve adopted in our lives emerge especially when we are making steps outside of our comfort zone (all those things we do to keep the fear at bay). My story has threaded my life and at times I’ve believed it, at times I fought hard against it, at times I’ve surrendered and allowed it to take over, at times I’ve been dismissive and disregarded it.

I feel a shift as it appears these days. I’m too far from the story to retreat back to its safety. I also feel the fight against it is over, it serves only to keep me engaged with the beliefs that truly no longer serve me. So what to do with this story, this aspect of myself that is clinging on for dear life, fearful I will leave it behind?

Today I choose to hear it, to see it, and to understanding its motives to keep me safe. I lovingly and gently allow this story to “speak its peace” and I nod understandingly, like a parent to their child.

Yes, I have created this story and I honor that it served me at one time. I hold the story and compassionately detach from it. For in each moment I have a choice, to move back into the past story or step forward into the unknown and create the new story. I am choosing to step forward.

” Be prepared to move out of your comfort zone. You will do things that you never knew you could do.” -Janice Novello

I have this quote on my desk and I read it every day. It’s not just a fluffy feel good quote, but a reminder that in order to play bigger, and help more people, I must choose to get out of my comfort zone every single day.

So let me tell you why this quote is so inspiring. I met Janice at event we were both speaking at, Recipe 4 Happiness. (Here I am with Janice in her NASA jumpsuit and me with my Creativity Queen crown)

I attended her workshop and was riveted by her story. You see Janice was ordinary middle school teacher (yes, that’s an oxymoron) who decided to model to her students the importance of taking risks. So in 2007 she submitted an entry for a two-week astronaut training program at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. She sent out the application and gave it little thought. A letter came back welcoming her to the program. She was chosen to be one of the 250 science and math teachers from 21 countries and 43 states!! She was flabbergasted (to say the least).

Now Janice had a choice at that point. This was obviously way outside of her comfort zone. She would be required to to physical tasks, such as getting out of a vehicle submerged under water and riding in a helicopter basket. Imagine the doubts and fears that must have been crossing her mind. I’m sure she could have easily made up some excuses, such as not being in good physical shape, fear of heights, having made other plans, etc. She actually had a great excuse, she was celebrating a very monumental birthday during the training time and already had plans in the works.

Oh, the excuses she could have made! Instead she made the commitment and went for it. She spoke about confronting her fears and even helping another participant do the trainings- which meant she decided to be in the submerged car for the second time, paddle in the water, and help her friend into the helicopter basket, despite her fears of drowning and heights. Why? Because she was willing to move out of her comfort zone, challenge herself, and experience things she could have never imagined!

So how can you take this inspiring message and help many more people this year?

Perhaps it is doing something out of your comfort zone to market your business, such as:

* Meeting a new possible referral resource for coffee

* Speaking to your target market group

* Writing a column for the local newspaper

* Starting your own newsletter

* Volunteering at an organization where your target market hangs out

* Starting a weekly radio show

If you are looking to make the big changes in your business then you must move out of your comfort zone. If you don’t know what to do first, don’t worry, you are not alone. Many business owners get overwhelmed and do know what to do. So I created a step-by-step program to teach you exactly what to do first in your business, so you can start seeing more clients immediately!

If you are ready to take a no excuses approach to your business, then there is still time to join the “Fill My Practice NOW System” – 6 Week Tele-Class. The System includes everything you need to know to prioritize what to work on first, and set up simple, solid systems to consistently draw clients to you. It’s all step-by-step, so we will cover step one of the system, then move on to step two, and so on. That’s why you will get such great results from it. All the “how to do it” tools are given to you, so you know what to do and in what order. Don’t worry if you missed the past calls- we will send you the link and you can listen to it at any time.

Are you tired of working either in your own business or working for an agency and you feel stressed out, burned out, or just plain unfulfilled?

Maybe the new year solidified your commitment to move forward in your business, and finally have the practice you love! Wonderful, but where do you begin? There’s so much information out there and it can often feel overwhelming because you don’t know what to do, and most importantly, what to do first!

Here’s my recommendation, before you try to figure out what to do first- go and have some creative fun. Yes, go and play! It is when we play and create space for exploration is when we get to explore what we desire to grow into. So go and get some magazines and cut out images of what you desire to create for 2010. Here’s my collage for 2010 and what I am choosing to grow into in the new year.